What's up with offshore wind in New England? Here's a map

The Trump administration is aggressively undermining the U.S. offshore wind industry through executive actions, including efforts to revoke critical permits for major projects like New England Wind and SouthCoast Wind, and temporarily halting construction on Ørsted's Revolution Wind due to 'national security concerns,' though a federal judge allowed work to resume. These actions, coupled with a general permitting freeze and elimination of tax credits, create significant regulatory uncertainty and operational risk for developers and investors, jeopardizing multi-billion dollar projects and future energy supply in the New England region.

Analysis

Support WBUR What's up with offshore wind in New England? Here's a map When it comes to the U.S. offshore wind industry, big changes are underway. Since re-taking office in late January, President Trump has worked to make good on a campaign promise to "end" the industry. He's issued a flurry of executive actions, including one that directed all federal agencies to stop issuing new permits to projects in development. He signed a bill into law that eliminates important tax credits for wind developers. And his administration handed down several stop-work orders to projects under construction, though some of those were later reversed, or overturned by a court. It's a lot to keep track of, especially here in New England, where there are 14 offshore wind lease areas with several projects that are either under construction or close to starting construction. So we made a map to help. Scroll below the map for a more detailed explanation of what these projects entail and their status. New England Wind 1 and 2 Status: Pre-construction development Location: 20 miles south of Martha's Vineyard Connects to land: New England Wind 1 will connect in Barnstable, Mass. There's no connection point yet for New England Wind 2. Developer: Avangrid Number of turbines: Up to 129 Power generation: Up to 1,870 megawatts, or about what's needed to power 1 million homes. Sells electricity to: The first phase of the project, New England Wind 1, is expected to sell 791 megawatts to Massachusetts. Negotiations over this power contract have been delayed several times because of federal uncertainty. Federal approval granted: July 2024 How the Trump administration has affected this project: On Sept. 3, the administration announced its intention to reconsider a key permit for New England Wind. The government wrote in court documents that it expects to file a motion by Oct. 18 to revoke the projects' Construction and Operations Plan, the last major federal permit an offshore wind project needs. The project's developers had planned to start construction in 2025 and begin producing power in 2029. Revolution Wind Status: Under construction Location: 15 miles south of Rhode Island, 12 miles southwest of Martha's Vineyard Connects to land: North Kingstown, R.I. Developer: Ørsted and Global Infrastructure Partners’ Skyborn Renewables Number of turbines: 65 Power generation: Up to 704 megawatts, or about what's needed to power 350,000 homes Sells electricity to: Rhode Island and Connecticut Federal approval granted: November 2023 How the Trump administration has affected this project: On Aug. 22, the U.S. Interior Department halted construction on Revolution Wind because of unspecified national security concerns. At the time of the order, the project was 80% complete. On Sept. 4, Ørsted sued the government and asked for a preliminary injunction so construction could resume. Connecticut and Rhode Island filed a similar lawsuit. On Sept. 22, a federal judge sided with Ørsted and temporarily lifted the stop-work order. The company resumed construction the same week. Barring any future disruptions, the project is expected to come online in early 2026. SouthCoast Wind 1 and 2 Status: Paused Location: 20 miles south of Nantucket Connects to land: SouthCoast Wind 1 will connect in Somerset, Mass. There's no connection point yet for SouthCoast 2. Developer: Ocean Winds Number of turbines: Up to 141 Power generation: Up to 2,400 megawatts, or about what's needed to power 840,000 homes in the region Sells electricity to: The first phase of the project, SouthCoast 1, is expected to sell 1,287 megawatts of power to Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Negotiations over this power contract have been delayed several times because of federal uncertainty. Federal approval granted: SouthCoast got its major federal approval in January 2025, but it still needed three minor federal permits when Trump took office. The new administration paused all permitting for offshore wind on Jan. 20, so the project is in limbo. How the Trump administration has affected this project: This project cannot move forward because of the permitting freeze, and it could soon lose that key permit it was granted at the end of the Biden administration. On Sept. 19, the administration asked a federal judge for permission to revoke SouthCoast Wind's Construction and Operation Plan, which is the last major federal permit an offshore wind project needs before it can start putting turbines in the water. A decision on the matter is expected soon. South Fork Wind Status: Fully operational since March 2024 Location: 35 miles east of Long Island Connects to land: East Hampton, N.Y. Developer: Ørsted and Global Infrastructure Partners’ Skyborn Renewables Number of turbines: 12 Power generation: Up to 132 megawatts, or about what's needed to power 70,000 homes Sells electricity to: New York Federal approval granted: January 2022 How the Trump administration has affected this project: So far, South Fork Wind has not been directly affected by any of the Trump administration's offshore wind policies or regulation changes. Sunrise Wind Status: Under construction Location: 30 miles east of Long Island Connects to land: Smith Point, N.Y. Developer: Ørsted Number of turbines: 84 Power generation: Up to 924 megawatts, or about what's needed to power 600,000 homes Sells electricity to: New York Federal approval granted: June 2024 How the Trump administration has affected this project: So far, this project has not been directly affected by any of the Trump administration's offshore wind policies or regulation changes. Vineyard Wind 1 Status: Under construction and generating some power. As of Oct. 1, the project is able to generate up to 400 megawatts. That means at least half of the turbines are producing power, though the company did not specify the exact number in operation. Location: 15 miles south of Martha's Vineyard Connects to land: Barnstable, Mass. Developer: 50-50 partnership between Avangrid and Vineyard Offshore Number of turbines: 62 Power generation: Up to 806 megawatts, or about what's needed to power 400,000 homes Sells electricity to: Massachusetts Federal approval granted: May 2021 How the Trump administration has affected this project: So far, this project has not been directly affected by any of the Trump administration's offshore wind policies or regulation changes. Other projects in region The following projects are in the early stages of development: Avangrid's lease areas in the Gulf of Maine Invenergy's lease areas in the Gulf of Maine How the Trump administration has affected these projects: Because of the federal freeze on offshore wind permitting, they have effectively been on pause since Trump took office. This article was originally published on October 01, 2025. The U.S. offshore wind sector is facing substantial regulatory and political headwinds following a series of executive actions by the Trump administration aimed at halting the industry's development. These actions include a freeze on new permits, the elimination of key tax credits, and direct intervention in ongoing projects. The impact is particularly acute for pre-construction assets, such as Avangrid's (AVGR) New England Wind project, which now faces the potential revocation of its primary construction permit, creating significant uncertainty and delaying power contract negotiations. Similarly, Ocean Winds' SouthCoast Wind project is paused and at risk of losing its key federal approval. In contrast, Ørsted (ORSTED) has demonstrated notable resilience; although its Revolution Wind project was 80% complete when construction was halted, the company successfully secured a court-ordered injunction to resume work. Furthermore, Ørsted's South Fork Wind project is already operational and its Sunrise Wind project remains under construction, both so far unaffected by the new policies. This creates a clear bifurcation in the sector, where companies with projects already under construction or operational appear more insulated from immediate policy risks than those with assets in earlier development stages.

Key Decisions for Investors

• Investors should recognize the heightened political risk profile for Avangrid (AVGR), as its key New England Wind project is directly targeted for permit revocation, placing future development and revenue streams in jeopardy.
• Ørsted (ORSTED) presents a more resilient investment case within the sector, having successfully challenged a government stop-work order in court and with two other major projects proceeding without disruption, indicating a lower near-term vulnerability to the current regulatory environment.
• Portfolio exposure to the U.S. offshore wind sector should be re-evaluated, favoring companies with operational assets or projects deep into the construction phase over those with projects in pre-construction or permitting stages, which are highly susceptible to freezes and legal challenges.
• Closely monitor the outcomes of legal battles over permit revocations for the New England Wind and SouthCoast Wind projects, as these will set a critical precedent for the viability of all pre-construction offshore wind investments in the U.S.